Friday, April 19, 2024
7 p.m.
Grizzly Peak Winery, Ashland
Siskiyou Music Project welcomes for the first time in southern Oregon, Duo Violão Brasil Plus One. This will be part of a residency partnership with Britt Education and the group will visit a number of schools while they’re in southern Oregon.
Duo Violão Brasil Plus One is the result of guitarists Rogério Souza and Edinho Gerber’s reverence for Brazilian guitar, the “violão”, and their desire to explore and expand the musical possibilities of putting two “violões” together. A master of both 6 and 7 string guitars, Rogério Souza is one of the foremost representatives of the music of Rio de Janeiro. He is an award-winning composer and arranger who has worked with a veritable who’s who of Brazilian artists. Duo Violão is joined by pandeiro player and percussionist Ami Molinelli who records with Grupo Falso Baiano, one of the leading American choro bands. With repertoire from composers like Pixinguinha, Baden Powell, and Tom Jobim, they navigate effortlessly through the many styles of 20th century Brazilian popular music while showcasing original works and inventive arrangements.
Rogério Souza is a pioneer in developing the style of music that is known today as “choro novo” – innovative interpretations of traditional Brazilian instrumental music while remaining true to the roots of the music. He performs regularly in music festivals, concerts, and workshops throughout Latin America, Europe, the United States, and Asia. His current show focuses on the art of Brazilian guitar and includes original works as well as classic repertoire. Along with performing, Rogério frequently gives masterclasses and workshops that focus on guitar styles and cover material from his latest books and CDs.
Edinho Gerber possesses a rich musical vocabulary developed in the two countries where he was raised: the United States and Brazil. Navigating effortlessly between the genres of choro, jazz, samba, and blues, he is always in search of the intersection points within his dual cultural identity. A staple in the Chicago music scene for many years, he was a highly in demand sideman having played with countless U.S. based Brazilian groups, including Som Brasil, Renato Anesi Trio, A Cor do Brasil, and led the samba-jazz group Zona Sul. He has performed in prestigious festivals and concerts in throughout the United States, Russia, and Japan, and currently resides in Rio de Janeiro where he performs regularly with Duo Violão Brasil and recently released “Benjamim e Edinho” an inventive cross-cultural collaboration with Ben Lamar Gay.
Ami Molinelli is a professional percussionist and educator specializing in Brazilian and Latin percussion. Ami received her Master of Fine Arts from the California Institute of the Arts. Her performance and recording credits include theater, television (NBC). She is a freelance performing artist as well. She is endorsed by Latin Percussion (LP) and Rhythm Tech.
Here last album, “História do Choro” with Duo Violão Brasl + 1 was released in 2019 and was celebrated as one of the best jazz albums from the Bay Area for 2019. (Andy Gilbert, San Jose Mercury News) She is a two-time San Francisco Arts Commission Individual Artist Recipient 2018 and 2020.
She co-leads the Brazilian and Jazz ensemble, Grupo Falso Baiano with three albums to their credit: “Depois” released in 2017, “Simplicidade – Live at Yoshi’s” and “Viajando em Choro e Jazz.” Grupo Falso Baiano have been featured on NPR’s the California Report, Radio Latina and Pandora LIVE!
